The item below is from the AAG Newsletter
Volume 31 Number 10. It is reprinted here with permission from
the President of the Association, Prof. Lawrence Brown.

Continuity and Change: Geographical Societies: The mid-to
late-1800s.

Science became a broad-based ethos in North America and
Europe; confidence and excitement reigned; elements of transition
from an agrarian to industrial society. The renaissance scientist
was still the norm; specialization, and its narrowing scope, was
decades in the future. Opportunities for geographical discovery
abounded--the arctic poles, Africa, Asia, parts of Latin
America--also the ocean, the lithosphere, the moon! And, while
these endeavors gripped the fascination of many strata of
society, there also emerged people who could afford to
participate, directly or vicariously--wealthy philanthropists and
a burgeoning middle class.

Geographical societies flourished, popularizing our
science--Paris, 1821; Berlin, 1828; London, 1830; Mexico City,
1833; Rio de Janeiro, 1838--and in 1851, the American
Geographical Society of New York. Geography in the Making:
The American Geographical Society, 1851-1951 (J. Kirtland
Wright, American Geographical Society, 1952) states "The
blossoming of geographical societies was part of a change in the
whole aspect of Western civilization. After the Napoleonic Wars,
the progress of scientific discovery, of technical invention, and
of education caused a rapid increase in the quantity and variety
of occupations and interests of all kinds...also of unions,
societies, and associations representing them. ...the
railway,...steamship, ...improvement of postal services and
publication [facilities], ...men were free to roam the world in
mind and body. Energies...were now released for widespread
commercial and colonial ventures...the settlement of remote
frontiers...geographical discovery and exploration were their
accompaniment." (pp.7-8)

On a more personal note, Geography in the Making tells
us that "Membership in the Society enables [one] to meet
other gentlemen with kindred tastes, to listen to geographical
lectures and take part in lively discussions...[George
Knickerbocker notes] so far as one can tell from this map, the
best route for the railroad would run from... the distances are
so tremendous...he wonders whether the whole proposition is not
an idle dream. But it doesn't seem so long ago that maps of this
region were mostly blank... When he was a boy, the United States
stopped at the Mississippi. Then came the Louisiana Purchase and
Lewis and Clarke's wonderful journey...which step-by-step have
filled in the blank spaces...he swells with pride...that the
stars and stripes now wave over California" (pp.8-9). Also,
"On or near Washington Square stood other institutions of
learning--the Union Theological Seminary, the General Theological
Seminary, the new Free Academy (later...called the College of the
City of New York), the New York Society Library" (p.6). This
was a time of cultural-institution building--museums, libraries,
colleges, theaters, parks, and--learned societies. But it also
was a time when organizations such as nineteenth-century
geographical societies were motivated to urge "the execution
of geographical projects conceived for the benefit of the United
States, from the building of the railways and the cutting of the
Panama Canal, to the provision of adequate charts for aerial
navigation." (M. Aurousseau, review of Geography in the
Making, Geographical Review, nd). Indeed, geographical
societies and their principals were active players in, and often
shaped, current events of the day; Isaiah Bowman is only one
example. The brewpots of geographical societies and US history,
intertwined.

The National Geographic Society emerged a
quarter-century later, in 1888 (The National Geographic
Society: 100 Years of Adventure and Discovery. C.D.B. Bryan,
Harry N. Abrams, 1987). It had an egalitarian ideal, "to
increase and diffuse...geographical knowledge ...[to] any
interested citizen" (p.27). While early National
Geographics were more scientific, detached, and with a tinge
of judgement and polemic, it almost immediately moved toward the
more popular format we know today (pp.28-29)--tapping the market
created by "emergence of a vast, educated, ambitious middle
class (generated by the increasingly sophisticated, expanding
public-school systems and easier access to colleges and
universities)"...(p.83).

Other nineteenth societies still existing include the Geographical
Society of Philadelphia (1891, now 'Greater Philadelphia')
and Geographic Society of Chicago (1898). Though more
modest than the AGS and NGS, these also supported exploration,
sponsored travel excursions, held public lectures (e.g.,
"Adventures in the Antarctic" by Shackleton, "Our
Airplane Dash for the North Pole" by Amundsen), created
library collections, and awarded Medals--to explorers such as
Amundsen, Byrd, Costeau, Glenn, Hillary, Peary; writers such as
Michener; academic and institutional geographers such as Bowman,
Colby, Goode, Grosvenor, Huntington, Lattimore, Salisbury.

New geographical societies appeared after World War II; among
those on which I have information is the California Geographic
Society. Founded in 1946, it is strongly oriented toward
geographic education in K-12 and community college settings;
these professionals dominate its membership, and the organization
serves a large number of venues and people throughout the state.
The Florida Society of Geographers was founded in 1964.
Its concern with field trips and research on Florida has been
broadened by close linkage with the Florida Geographic Alliance.
Judging by the one meeting I serendipitously attended, this is a
group of academic and applied geographers (and educators) from
throughout the state who value an opportunity to associate with
one another. The New Mexico Geographical Society, of more
recent origin, largely involves a lecture series. Elliot McIntire
writes "There is also the Los Angeles Geographical
Society, founded ca. 1950, which is more like the 19th
century Geographical Societies. Most members are not professional
geographers (although the officers are) but community members
with an interest in travel, [field trips], and seeing slide shows
of exotic places."

Another organization is a class by itself; The Society of
Women Geographers, founded in 1925 by "four women...in
New York--all recognized explorers" (Society Brochure).
This national organization has seven local chapters in New York
and Washington (the original two), Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami,
San Francisco, and Seattle. It carries out an active fellowship
program for "young women studying for advanced degrees"
(>100); has awarded Gold Medals to Amelia Earhart, Jane
Goodall, Mary Leakey, Margaret Mead, and Kathryn Sullivan; and
"the Society's flag has been [carried by] active members
[to]...new geographical horizons, including the depths of the
ocean, the South Pole, and outer space."

Geographical societies are an interesting and vital part of
our heritage. They emanated from a new age of science,
exploration, and democratization of knowledge. These elements
remain, but over time, travel and education have moved to center
stage. Especially important is the tremendous role of these
societies in K-12 geography, including particularly the Geography
Alliance and Geography for Life movements. The academy has
been a constant, albeit changing, ingredient. Pre-World War II
societies have been critiqued for presenting an ethnocentric view
of the world, but they've been a vibrant and indispensable medium
for popularizing geography. Geographical societies provide
testimony that Geography has been, and remains, exciting--for
ourselves as professionals, but also for the public at large. Continuity
and change.